VADA Offers Up Free Testing Program For The UFC | UFC NEWS

The VADA organization has made diligent efforts to clean up the sport of Mixed Martial Arts through random, unannounced drug screening.

More and more these days UFC fighters seem to be getting popped for banned substances, resulting in fines, suspensions and overturned verdicts of fights. In some instances pre-fight testing has cost the UFC main events, millions of dollars and complete restructuring of pay-per-views at the last-minute.

According the a report coming out of Bloodyelbow.com, VADA rep, Dr. Margaret Goodman released a statement that explained the offer her organization put out to the UFC last month.

The statement reads as follows:

On 2/16/13, VADA sent a proposal to the UFC addressed to Lorenzo, Dana and Frank that VADA would help them set up a state-of-the art PED program with unannounced random testing for blood and urine. We indicated that there would be no adminsitrative charges at least for the first year. This would include education courses. We would use a WADA-accredited lab, certified doping collection officers and the results would go to the fighter, the UFC, the ABC/the official MMA record-keeper for the ABC, and the commission where the fighter held a license. I believe the UFC would save money, improve public confidence that fighters are competing clean, injuries would be less with fighters competing less on PEDs, and overall safety would improve. We also mentioned that although VADA no longer has THC in our testing panel, we would include it at their request. The testing would include EPO, hGH, CIR. To date, we have had no response, but we remain happy to discuss.

Admittedly, the UFC, if they were to implement such a program would probably keep it in-house, but is this a step in the right direction? Should a program like this be put in place?

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